WESTERVILLE, OH – The American Ceramic Society (ACerS) today announced the names of the organization's three newest Distinguished Life Members.
Noboru Ichinose, Brian R. Lawn and Joel P. Moskowitz are the 2012 recipients of the Distinguished Life Member Award, the highest honor accorded members of the scientific and technical organization. The award is given in recognition of an individual's eminent contribution to the ceramic and glass profession.
"The Society's Distinguished Life Member is presented annually to the organization's most inspirational members, who paved new roads in their science, technical or business fields while contributing to the growth and programming of the organization, and guiding its younger leaders," says ACerS President George Wicks.
The trio will be inducted as Distinguished Life Members at the Society's Annual Awards and Honors Banquet on Oct. 8, 2011, in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Noboru Ichinose
Ichinose, now an emeritus professor, is the former dean of the faculty of engineering at Waseda University in Tokyo and the past director of the school's Kagami Memorial Research Institute for Materials Science and Technology. Ichinose is an internationally recognized expert in the area of functional ceramic materials and has made seminal contributions in the development of a wide variety of functional ceramic materials
Ichinose's work, in particular, covers an enormous variety of electronic ceramic materials, such as ferrites, thermally conductive materials, dielectric materials, thermistors, piezoelectrics, sensors and superconducting materials. These include many commercial products manufactured by Toshiba Corp. A prolific researcher, Ichinose authored or coauthored more than 200 papers, edited or co-edited more than 60 books and earned more than 450 patents.
Ichinose is held in high regard in the materials science field in native country and is the past president of the Ceramic Society of Japan.
Brian R. Lawn
Lawn's name is synonymous with "indentation fracture mechanics" and the pioneering work he did in the development of indentation-testing methods now commonly used in materials science. His work in advancing the understanding of fracture mechanics of brittle materials, from the atomic to the macro level, has delivered major advancements in basic science, engineering and, most recently anthropology.
Lawn authored the seminal materials testing book, Fracture of Brittle Solids, first published in 1975. He went on to publish more than 300 research papers and became one of the most-cited materials scientists worldwide for many years.
Lawn eventually became a staff member at the United States' National Institute of Standards and Technology. In 1987, he was appointed to the position of NIST Fellow. In 2001, he was elected to the US National Academy of Engineering, and, in 2012, to the Australian Academy of Science.
Although nominally retired, Lawn has shifted his focus to biological applications of indentation, particularly in regard to how dental fracture patterns can aid anthropological research.
Joel P. Moskowitz
Trained as a ceramic engineer at Alfred University, Joel Moskowitz also earned an MBA degree at the University of Southern California, and eventually became an entrepreneurial superstar in the commercial ceramics field. Starting with only his life savings and a telephone in a bedroom, he built Ceradyne into a worldwide, diversified business best known for developing rugged and reliable ceramic armor plates.
Ceradyne's business focuses on defense, transportation, electronics, medical, nuclear, solar and oil and gas applications. Research and manufacturing facilities can be found in the US, Germany, China and Canada.
Moskowitz has provided remarkable leadership and financial support to several academic institutions, including Alfred University and Clemson University. He served for many years on ACerS's President's Council of Industrial Advisors and most recently helped the organization create its Ceramic Leadership Summit meeting series. He has also provided major support for the International Ceramic Congress, the International Federation on Ceramics and the International Commission on Glass.
About ACerS
Founded in 1898, The American Ceramics Society is the professional membership organization for international ceramics and materials scientists, engineers, researchers, manufacturers, plant personnel, educators and students. Drawing members from 60 countries, ACerS serves the informational, educational, and professional needs of its 6,000 members and provides them with access to periodicals and books, meetings and expositions, and technical information. ACerS also maintain an extensive materials science website that provides online access to its journals, publications, science and career forums and specialized technical knowledge centers.